ASML (NASDAQ:ASML) Trading Up 1.6% – What’s Next?

ASML Holding N.V. (NASDAQ:ASML) rose 1.6% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $1,451.49 and last traded at $1,435.63. Approximately 1,137,370 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 48% from the average daily volume of 2,184,330 shares. The stock had previously closed at $1,413.62.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on ASML shares. Berenberg Bank restated a “buy” rating on shares of ASML in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Weiss Ratings lowered ASML from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Monday, January 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a “buy” rating on shares of ASML in a report on Monday, February 2nd. KGI Securities set a $1,415.00 price target on ASML and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 15th. Finally, Evercore reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of ASML in a research report on Thursday, October 16th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have assigned a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, ASML presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,475.00.

ASML Price Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $564.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 55.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 1.89. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $1,227.82 and a 200 day moving average price of $1,019.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 0.79.

ASML Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 5th. Investors of record on Monday, April 27th will be issued a $3.1771 dividend. This is a boost from ASML’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.88. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 27th. This represents a $12.71 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. ASML’s payout ratio is 24.55%.

Institutional Trading of ASML

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of ASML by 3.0% in the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 4,484,949 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $4,798,268,000 after purchasing an additional 132,353 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors increased its position in ASML by 17.3% in the third quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 3,919,154 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $3,791,982,000 after purchasing an additional 577,448 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its position in shares of ASML by 16.6% during the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 2,148,506 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $2,079,948,000 after acquiring an additional 305,435 shares during the last quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of ASML by 24.9% in the 3rd quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC now owns 1,933,748 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $1,861,445,000 after acquiring an additional 385,502 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE boosted its position in shares of ASML by 8.3% during the third quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 1,865,254 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $1,805,733,000 after purchasing an additional 142,763 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 26.07% of the company’s stock.

ASML Company Profile

ASML Holding N.V. (NASDAQ: ASML) is a Dutch company that develops, manufactures and services advanced photolithography systems used to produce semiconductor chips. Headquartered in Veldhoven, Netherlands, ASML supplies capital equipment and associated software and services that enable semiconductor manufacturers to pattern the intricate circuits on silicon wafers. The company is widely recognized for its leadership in extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography as well as its deep ultraviolet (DUV) platforms used across multiple process nodes.

ASML’s product portfolio includes EUV and DUV lithography machines, light sources, imaging optics and control software, together with spare parts, upgrades and field services.